Rural Missouri - January 2014 - 19

MISSOURI SNAPSHOTS

Photographers focus on Missouri State Parks for third annual contest
by Jason Jenkins
jjenkins@ruralmissouri.coop

hen was the last time you visited a
Missouri state park or historic site? If
you haven't been in a while, let us
tell you - you're missing out.
For the past three years, Rural Missouri has teamed
with Missouri State Parks to bring you the Missouri
Snapshots Photo Contest. Even in that short period
of time, a lot has happened.
Just this year alone, the Show-Me State was
named the "Best Trails State" by American Trails, a
national, nonproﬁt organization working on behalf
of the nation's hiking, biking and riding trails. Your
state parks offer nearly 1,000 miles of those trails.
To celebrate this distinction, the parks joined with
Gov. Jay Nixon and First Lady Georganne Nixon to
promote the 100 Missouri Miles program. Thanks
to their efforts, Missourians got off the couch and
logged more than 1 million miles.
Hiking isn't the only state park activity. Camping, paddling, biking, swimming and ﬁshing are just
some of the opportunities that abound in the parks.

CAPTURE

Never camped before? No problem.
Through the parks' "Learn2"
programs, you can gain the
skills you need to make
your outdoor experience
more enjoyable, including
camping, hiking and kayaking, just to name a few.
With more than 145,000
acres to explore at 87 state parks
and historic sites in every corner of
the state, Missouri State Parks offer family fun and
adventure that's both close to home and affordable.
They provide the perfect muse for a photography
contest - and our readers couldn't agree more.
This year's edition of the contest featured six categories, including one exclusively for youth age 17
and younger. More than 1,000 photos were entered,
both as prints and online using the website, Flickr.
In November, judges selected semiﬁnalists in each
category. From these, the ﬁnal 18 winners - which
appear below and on the next three pages - were
selected. The remaining semiﬁnalists can be viewed
in a photo gallery inside our digital edition.

THE BEAUTY 3

2ND

"This contest is a great opportunity to see Missouri's state
parks and historic sites
through the eyes of our
visitors, including the
youth that enjoy our
trails, educational programs and campsites,"
says Bill Bryan, director of
Missouri State Parks, a division
of the Missouri Department of Natural
Resources. This year's entries provided some great
examples of the features to enjoy and fun to be discovered in Missouri State Parks."
Each ﬁrst-place photographer wins a Missouri
State Parks Getaway Package that will be tailored to
the winner's recreational interests. Valued at $500,
the packages include lodging, meals and a state park
activity. Second- and third-place photographers each
receive a $100 and $50 Missouri State Parks gift card,
respectively. Youth winners also receive gift cards.
Learn more about Missouri State Parks online at
www.mostateparks.com or call 800-334-6946.

1st: "Ha Ha Tonka Panorama"
by Larry Strong, Marshﬁeld. The
Webster Electric member ﬁrst
visited Ha Ha Tonka State Park
in 1988; he says it's his favorite
place to go. Many will recognize
the dead tree that stands along
the trail leading up to the castle.
2nd: "Feather" by Cheryl Sloan,
Cameron. Hoping to catch a
glimpse of some Canada geese
goslings, the Platte-Clay Electric
member took her grandkids to
Wallace State Park this spring.
While they found no birds,
Cheryl snapped this photo of a
goose feather. 3rd: "Twisted"
by Mary Crist, Columbia. While
on a Memorial Day camping trip
to Mark Twain State Park, this
dead cedar tree along the bank
caught Mary's attention.

ST
JANUARY 2014

http://www.mostateparks.com http://www.mostateparks.com

Rural Missouri - January 2014

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Rural Missouri - January 2014